Wednesday, November 17, 2010

How Often Do We See Little Snow in November & December?

The first two weeks of November were about as atypical a November as it gets here in Cleveland. Nine consecutive days with more than 90% sunshine with average temperatures in the upper 50s and lower 60s. A stretch like this makes the first shot of winter weather that's coming that much harder to take.

Instead of thinking about heavy snow, how about focusing on small amounts of snow for this time of year. Is it that unusual to have a November and December without much snow?

The chart below shows that 59 of the 111 Novembers since 1901 have had less than 5 inches of snow in northeastern Ohio. While December has only 20 of 111 Decembers since 1901 with less than 5 inches of snow.

So don't think of this November without abundant snow as something unique. If under 5 inches of snow falls in December then make a special note of it because it doesn't happen that often.